Michaela and the Sorceress
by Scarlet Fitzwalter
Summary: There's a new vigilante hero in Central City, a black clothed woman called the Sorceress, with a mysterious past. Mysterious, that is, until she meets a young girl named Michaela. After saving the vigilante's life, Michaela asks to aide the Sorceress in her work. With this, Michaela discovers adventure like she has never seen before and a tale filled with heroism and heartbreak.
1. Chapter 1

On one crisp fall night, I saved the Sorceress' life.

It was just like any other ordinary night, until the vigilante legend literally fell straight into my path. She made a fateful choice to reveal her secrets to me so that her life stood a chance- secrets that I would keep in exchange for any favor I wished.

The Sorceress is heroic.

The Sorceress is a genius.

The Sorceress has saved and taken countless lives.

And the Sorceress is in my debt.

Maybe I should introduce you first.

You've probably heard of Superman. Spiderman. Wonderwoman. The Arrow. The Flash. Maybe even Arsenal?

Sure, you know about them. The flashy heroes. The ones that made a name and an image for themselves so that countless others could worship them in the years to come.

But, the ones you don't know about? The ones that do their work in silence, expecting no glory in return? The ones that go about their lives like normal, and die leaving their benefactors with no idea of who to thank?

Maybe… they're the real heroes.

They're people like who literally cloak themselves in invisibility and go about their days without seeing their masked faces in the papers.

Or they're people who save people as a shadow, but to the rest of the world, are known to be dead.

People like the Sorceress.

Chapter 1

A woman in black stands on the roof on the Central City Hospital's main building. Her eyes are chocolate brown and survey the sleeping city with a sharp eye.

A bird's call from above startles her – she easily leaps down from the roof onto the street below. The sound of her feet hitting the ground is no louder than the whistle of the wind.

She notices the coffee shop, Jitters just a few blocks ahead, and walks so fast and so gracefully, it's almost as if she glides past the sleeping shops. Finally, she reaches the coffee shop and peers in.

The lights are all out, except for a flickering sign saying CLOSED on the front door. She peers closer and can see, through the glass, the menu spread out above the counter. The Flash drink remains a special on the menu, the woman notices with a slight chuckle. It has been twenty years since the speedster's debut, and still the city adores him.

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps dislodging cobblestone sounds behind her and the woman turns sharply. But the culprit is gone. She moves more alertly now.

Then there is another sound behind her, even louder. She barely has time to turn to her pursuant before he is upon her, a vicious gleam in his eye. In his right hand, he wields a sword.

The woman gasps – her face is hidden by a mask that covers all but her eyes, and her hood covers her hair, weaving down to a black cloak that closes at the front, and is worn over a pair of black leggings. She immediately turns and races in the other direction, back towards the hospital, and she can feel her pursuant hot on her heels.

After less than a few minutes, it seems as though the footsteps are multiplying, and without turning she knows that more have come to join her original pursuant. Frustrated, she turns a sharp corner, and runs straight into a man in brown. He chuckles as he brings out a sword similar to his companion.

The woman stops in her tracks, and draws from her the sheath by her ankle a wicked looking blade with a curved edge.

"That's right," she says in a low, smooth voice, "You know what this is. And you know what I can do with it."

The man moves forward, and the woman sweeps the sword around her, in an arc, "Do you really want to push it?" she snaps.

The man hesitates, but then there is another sound behind her and she whips around to see her original pursuant. He taps the tip of his sword into his gloved hand.

"Are you sure _you_ want to push it? Sorceress?" he snarls.

There is fear in the woman's eyes, but she holds out her sword anyway, ready to take on both of her attackers. She is in a closed alleyway, there is nowhere to run, and she is prepared to fight for her life.

"Sorceress!" a small voice peeps from behind her.

She allows herself to look away from a moment, and catches a glimpse of a young girl, with wavy light brown hair, crouching in the alleyway. The Sorceress feels dismay wash over her. She tries to avoid having civilians in the field when fighting her opponents, and especially not children. Her attackers have not yet noticed the girl, but if she continues to push for attention, it will not be long before she is noticed.

"I have a way out," The girl whispers.

The woman keeps her eyes trained on one attacker, but weighs the girl's words. A way out? Who is this child?

"Follow me," she says, before disappearing.

The Sorceress feels her options battering her – either stay and fight or run after this girl and hope she actually has an escape. She sighs inwardly before pulling a small black ball the size of a marble from her pocket.

"And what do you plan on doing with that," her second pursuant growls.

The Sorceress doesn't answer, but raises the ball above her head. Then without warning, she throws the ball to the ground, and a puff of thick black smoke rose around her.

The two men in brown cough, furiously trying to ward off the smoke. When it finally clears, the woman is gone.

The first pursuant meets his companion's eye. The same anger is reflected by each of them.

"Bloody Sorceress," the first man snarls, "She won't get away with this again."

At 40 years old, most people would have started to put down the bats and the balls and start filling into a middle-aged body. Barry Allen, however, has only gained speed.

"One more time, Uncle Barry! Remember, only _I_ know where I hid the pizza!"

Barry stops in his tracks with a puff on the speed track and Wally West laughs.

"Whoo!" Barry says, throwing a look at Wally, "Your kid is something else, Wally."

"Uncle Barry," says the young girl holding an iPad 18 and giving Barry a stern look.

"You heard her, Barry," Wally says, clapping him on the back.

Barry sighs, "Alright Kate, I'm going" Barry pauses for a moment, then throws himself back into high speed.

Hearty laughter comes from the back of the room, and a middle-aged brown haired woman comes forward and put her hands on Kate's shoulders. "Katie, are you giving your uncle a hard time?"

The girl twists her head back to give the woman a critical look. "Mom, he _needs_ to go faster. Otherwise, my science project will completely flop."

"Well, I for one think you are an extremely lucky kid to have _three_ speedsters helping you with your science project," a deep voice chuckles from behind a computer from where it is seated on a small wooden table.

Kate's gaze softens, "I know, Grandpa," She says, coming to him and wrapping her arms around him from behind.

Wally rolled his eyes, "Jesus, Dad."

"He's right, Wally," says the brown-haired woman, coming beside Wally and sliding her hand in his. He turns to look into her eyes, "She's lucky. And so are we."

Wally smiles and the two lean in for a kiss.

"Mom, Dad, ew," says Kate, ducking behind Joe West. Joe laughs.

"It's not long now before you start bringing boys for your daddy to beat up," he chuckles.

Wally frowns at him and the woman beside him, Jesse scoffs.

"You hardly beat up Barry when he started dating Iris."

Joe shrugs, "Yeah, and that's because I raised him half his life. I was okay with Iris dating a boy because I oversaw most of his moral development."

"Wow, thanks Joe," said Barry, who has finished his run and is now wiping his face with a towel. He throws it at Wally, who dashes away. "I kinda thought you actually trusted me."

"Yeah, cause you're my son too."

"Oh, please don't make this weird," says Wally, putting his face in his hands.

"Too late," said a new voice, coming in through the door. Iris West-Allen crosses her arms and looks directly at her father. "Dad, I thought we were over this like, two decades ago. Can you just let Barry and I enjoy our marriage without you going and making it sound weird?"

"But it _is_ weird, Iris…" Joe says with an innocent shrug, then trailing off as Iris raised her eyebrows at him, "And I'll stop talking about it so you and Barry can enjoy your marriage.

Iris smiles. "Thank you." Barry zooms over to her. "Barry, there's someone who's been waiting to see you all day."

Barry grins. "Of course, where is she?"

Iris smiles and nods her head. A teenage girl comes out carrying a tiny baby. Barry sighs, his eyes shining.

He smiles at the girl first, coming and kissing her head, "My beautiful Nora," he says, and she smiles back at him. Then they look down at the small baby, who has begun to fuss.

"Oh," Barry breathes, "He reaches out and takes the baby from his eldest daughter's arms, "Fran, aren't you absolutely precious today." He takes the baby and cradled her against his chest.

Iris comes beside him, resting on his arm and the entire lab turns to look at the scene with happiness.

"Uncle Barry."

Barry Allen sighs and gently returns Fran to her sister's arms with smile. "Coming, Katie."

The girl is acutely aware of the silence with which the Sorceress glides behind her. She feels her heart racing faster as she realizes she is finally meeting her, finally meeting the living legend responsible for saving so many lives.

Then she hears the voice speak from behind her. "Where are you taking me, child?"

"Just a little farther," the girl says hastily. After making herself visible to the Sorceress, she ducked into an alley that led beneath the Jitters coffee shop, and is navigating a set of hidden passageways that she has known for years. She looks behind to see that the Sorceress is still following, and is shocked for a moment to see a fierceness in her eyes that she was not expecting.

Finally, she reaches an old, brown door. The front of it is covered in scratches, and it creaks loudly as Michaela opens it.

"Quiet!" the Sorceress hisses. Michaela nods, startled, back at her, then inches the door open slowly the rest of the way and makes her way in.

The interior of the room is a mess. The leftmost corner is littered with papers. Three large cans of solution line the wall next to it, and in the middle of the room is a small rectangular table. Three small wooden chairs sat around the room. A soft red glow illuminates the whole room.

Michaela turns back to the Sorceress, who is just crossing the threshold and taking in the room with sharp eyes. "It's a dark room," the girl explains briefly.

The Sorceress turns her head slowly to look at her. "Wonderful," she says, "My favorite kind."

Although the Sorceress seems to enjoy the room, there is nothing in her expression to suggest she has softened towards the girl. She sighs inwardly.

"Um…so what's the deal with those guys chasing you?"

The Sorceress turns to her and her eyes burn through the girl. She feels as though she is being attacked with daggers.

"You don't need to concern yourself with that," the Sorceress says icily.

The girl hesitates a moment. Then an idea comes to her and she stuck out her hand. "So, I'm Michaela."

The Sorceress eyes the hand coldly. "You have done me a favor, Michaela," she says, without taking the hand. "This will not be forgotten."

Michaela withdraws her hand. "Um, thanks."

The Sorceress sighs. "But now I really must be leaving."

"Of course," Michaela says, feeling a sinking disappointment in her heart nonetheless. Her moment in the presence of the vigilante she had heard so much about had lasted no more than three minutes.

"Thanks again," The Sorceress says, grudgingly, then turns to leave the way she came. Then, just as she is preparing to turn the doorknob, she turns back around to the doorknob. She hesitated before she spoke.

"…Michaela, right? Is- is this room being used?"

"Kate had you working today, didn't she?"

Barry chuckles from where his seated on his old chair in the control room of STAR Labs, his wife beside him. "No kidding."

Iris rubs his arm. "You seem kind of sad today, Barry."

He is quiet for a moment. "Kate is brilliant, Iris."

She nods. "She is going to do amazing things."

Barry shuts his eyes and he feels a sudden pain in his heart. "I used to know someone else just like her."

He seems for a moment to be lost in memories before Iris' voice calls him back. "Oh my god."

Barry opens his eyes, and follows his wife's gaze to where she is looking at the STAR Labs television. His heart tightens as he reads the headline, _FESTO SUSPECTED OF TAKING MAYORAL CANDIDATE RAY PALMER. WIFE AND TEENAGE DAUGHTER ALSO REPORTED MISSING._

Iris turns to him. "My god, Barry. It's Ray."

Barry sighs heavily. "They've struck too many times, Iris. But I don't know what to do. We've tried everything to figure out where they are and we've come up with nothing."

Iris stands up briskly. "Barry, this is _Ray_. Our friend. We have to find a way!"

Barry looks up at her, the pain in his eyes reaching deep. "I can't. I can't do any more than I have."

Iris looks back at the screen. "Oh, poor Anna. She's just a child. I wonder if Nora knows about this yet. Or Michaela."

Barry looks at her. "Maybe. She's in their year."

Iris nods. "And this Sorceress…"

"Sorceress!" Barry stands and Iris looks at him with concern. "She's the reason I'm able to do half I what I do right now. And I don't even know who she is!"

Iris gives him a look. "Well, whoever she is… we should be grateful. She's taking out the minor baddies while you focus on this Festo problem."

Barry turns to her with a hopeful expression.

Iris' brow goes up, "What?"

"What if… what if Sorceress joined us?"

"What?" Iris gies him an incredulous look. "Barry, we've been down this road, before. Sorceress is virtually untraceable. And even if she were… who knows if she would even want to work with us?"

Barry nods slowly. "Right, you're right I know." He runs a face over his face. "I'm just so fed up with this Festo problem. They're turning Central City into a terrifying place to live. And they're even starting to lose faith in me."

"In us," Iris says, coming to him and squeezing his shoulder. "And we can handle them. We won't let this city forget how formidable the Flash is." She smiles at him.

He gives a small smile in return, and she turns and begins to walk away.

"Don't lose faith in yourself, Barry," she says over her shoulder.

"Um…no I guess not," Michaela stammers. Sorceress nods.

"This place may be ideal as a base."

Michaela's eyes widen. "Really?"

"How many other people know about this place?" Sorceress asks, avoiding Michaela's gaze.

"Um, no one," Michaela says. "No one but me."

"Do you use this place regularly."

"N-no."

Sorceress nods. "Then this is ideal." She turns back to Michaela, who is still shocked from the idea of the Sorceress using the place as her base.

"You would never be able to come here," the Sorceress warns, "Nor can you tell anyone about this place."

Michaela finds herself nodding slowly. "O-okay."

Sorceress nods. "Great, so… it's most likely not safe for you to leave with those guys still hanging around, you should probably stay here."

It is odd for the vigilante to invite Michaela to stay in her own secret hideout, but she obliges, pulling out an old wooden chair and sitting down in the rightmost corner of the room. The Sorceress began to poke around. Among the many stacks of old film paper, there were a few old film cameras and rolls in their canisters. A few trays lay stacked against the wall for film processing, and against the opposite sides were contraptions used for transferring the images from the camera to the paper before processing.

"This is an odd room," the Sorceress remarked.

Michaela sighs inwardly. Even more odd is the situation she's in now. Somehow, this is not how she imagined her first meeting with the vigilante.

"Do you work with anyone?"

The Sorceress turns back to her sharply. "What?"

Michaela fidgets in her seat. "It's just – I know that the Flash has a team."

"I am not the Flash," The Sorceress says flatly.

"Of course not," Michaela says hastily. "I was just wondering."

"I prefer to work alone," the Sorceress says simply. She glances at the door, as if could will the two men chasing her to simply disappear. "You should get some sleep," she says, without looking back at Michaela.

"Um, okay," Michaela looks around her. She realizes there isn't much in the dark room fit for a comfortable sleep, but then looks up and sees that the Sorceress has taken off her cloak and holds it out to Michaela. Underneath, she wears a short sleeved flowy black shirt.

"Use this," she says briskly. As Michaela takes it, she watches, the Sorceress pulls a small dark brown ball, no bigger than a marble from out from her hair, which is half pulled back by a black beret. Michaela watches in fascination as the Sorceress pushes a button on the ball and it inflates with alarming speed, eventually growing to the size of a flat, bathtub sized cushion.

"I use it for getaways," The Sorceress explains as Michaela gapes, open-mouthed, at the cushion. "I just push this button and if I have to jump from somewhere high, I've got somewhere to land. You can use it to sleep," she adds as Michaela continues to stand, amazed.

Michaela shakes herself out of her position. "Thanks, she says, gingerly sitting on the cushion, then allows herself to relax. She bunches up the Sorceress' cloak under her head relaxes her body into the cushion.

"Are you going to sleep?" Michaela asks, twisting her head to look at the Sorceress.

"I'm not tired," the Sorceress says without elaborating. She has pulled up a wooden chair similar to the one Michaela was using earlier and her eyes are once again fixed on the door.

"Okay," Michaela says, drowsiness beginning to take over her now that the adrenaline had died down from her initial encounter with the vigilante. But as she drifts into sleep, the thought occurs to her that perhaps the Sorceress was tired. But she wasn't going to show it, because she didn't trust Michaela.

Michaela is running through the dark streets of central city. The streetlights are tinged with red, and they throw a sinister glow onto all of the familiar buildings she has known her entire life. She passes by a sandwich shop from which she has eaten many times, Tiano's, and she sees through the window that the television is still on, switched to the news channel. Michaela peers closer and gasps as she sees the headline.

 _FESTO SUSPECTED OF TAKING POLICE DIRECTOR BARRY ALLEN. WIFE AND TEENAGE DAUGHTER ALSO REPORTED MISSING._

An icy feeling takes a hold of Michaela and her world spins around. No, this can't be happening. It can't, it can't.

"Nora!" she gasps.

Suddenly, her eyes fly open. She isn't in the streets of Central City, but in the dark room underneath Jitters. The Sorceress is still sitting in the same chair from before, and looks over at Michaela with concern.

"Are you alright, child?" she asks.

Michaela nods. "Have you slept at all?"

"I don't need to," Sorceress says, returning her gaze towards the door.

Michaela pauses to listen for a moment. Just as always, the room and its surroundings were silent. She was sure that no one knew of this room but her. And now… the Sorceress.

"Did you say… Nora?" the Sorceress asks.

Curiosity bubbles up within Michaela. Does the Sorceress know Nora?

"Yeah."

Sorceress shakes her head. "It's just… I used to know someone by that name," She says without elaborating.

Michaela lets her gaze linger on the Sorceress. She has a thousand more questions but she pushes them down so she can say what she's been meaning to.

"Sorceress, I was wondering…"

The vigilante turns her sharp gaze back to Michaela and she feels herself begin to heat up. But she won't let herself be intimidated this time. She pushes herself to say the words.

"I-I was wondering if I could help you. In your vigilante work."

There is a shattering silence then, in which Michaela was sure she would have been able to hear a single stand of the Sorceress long black hair fall to the floor.

"As I told you before," Sorceress says slowly, in a measured voice. "I work _alone_."

"But I saved your life!" Michaela blurts out before she can stop herself.

Sorceress' gaze hardens. "I had the situation under control."

"But I made things easier," Michaela argues, "Otherwise you wouldn't have come down here."

There is another silence at which Michaela imagines the Sorceress fuming at the situation she was in.

"You do know about my hideout," the Sorceress says slowly.

Michaela nods.

Sorceress sighs. "I suppose…"

"Yes!" Michaela sits up in her cushion. The Sorceress' eyes remain guarded. "I could get a superhero suit, too, and-"

"No!" the Sorceress cuts in sharply. "Nothing like that! You can do little things for me," she says in a softer voice. "You can provide intel and… covert investigation. But _nothing_ ," she adds with emphasis, "That would compromise your safety. Or my identity. It's very easy do something incredibly stupid in the name of a hero."

Michaela hesitates. It's not exactly what she imagined, but it's certainly better than nothing. She bravely sticks out a hand to the Sorceress and the vigilante eyes it warily before slowly taking it. Michaela gives it a firm shake and meets the Sorceress' eyes.

"Deal."

 _Hi! Thanks for reading the first chapter of my fan fiction focusing on two original characters and also following Central City's very own Barry Allen, twenty years into the future! More to come about the Sorceress' mysterious past, and about Michaela's life in Central City._


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Michaela opens her eyes with a start. Her alarm clock blares the time, 7:30 am, in front of her. She groans and reaches for the clock, pressing snooze.

"Michaela! Michaela!" It's her mother calling from the stairs. The voice grows closer as Michaela realizes her mother is coming upstairs to wake her.

"Michaela?" the door opens and her mother is standing just outside. Her short hair falls in a chic bob around her shoulders, and she wears square reading glasses. She is already wearing her trademark black pantsuit, and looks prepared for today's Senate meeting. She was a popular choice for Senator from the beginning, even though she grew up outside Central City, and has run unopposed for the last two terms.

"Michaela, sweetie, it's time to get ready," she says.

"Coming, Mom," Michaela mumbles into her pillow.

"Okay," her mother begins to close the door and Michaela feels blissfully carefree as sweet darkness surrounds her once more, "There's eggs waiting for you downstairs."

Michaela gives herself another two minutes to lay in the comfort of her bed, then pushes herself up and goes to the bathroom to brush her teeth. After showering, she picks out a pair of skinny jeans, and a black top with a denim jacket.

Her father stands in the kitchen, just behind the small island in the center, pouring a cup of black coffee for himself from their coffee maker. His eyebrows lift as she comes down the stairs into the kitchen.

"You look very cool today," he says with a wink.

Michaela grins. "Thanks, Dad."

"Here," Mom says, sliding a plate of eggs in front of Michaela as she sits down at the table. "Eat up."

Michaela picks up her forks and digs into the eggs in front of her. They're scrambled, just as she likes them. Her mother sits in front of her, having returned to her laptop, and her eyes are now fixated on the screen in front of her, likely related to a never ending tirade of Senate emails.

Dad notices too, and frowns slightly. Then he turns back to Michaela, his expression bright.

"So, what's new in Algebra, Mickey?"

"Hmm?" Michaela looks up at meets Dad's gaze, guilt running through her as she realizes she just missed everything he said.

Dad gives her a look not unlike the one he just gave her mother. "Are you alright, Mickey? You've seemed a little distracted lately."

"I'm fine," Michaela says hastily. In truth, Dad had caught her in the midst of daydreaming about the Sorceress again.

Last night, the vigilante had returned from a mission involving with a couple of crooks, a husband-wife pair, who had hijacked a wedding van and were planning on misusing a kind of mysterious plant to corrupt the city. In the week since the Sorceress had allowed Michaela to join her, Sorceress had never let Michaela out in the field for her missions. She would only question Michaela about general details from the day, and upon her return, give no more than two sentences of synopsis from the job. Last night, the Sorceress had told her virtually nothing when Michaela asked about the plants, only that they were very dangerous and it was immense importance that they were not to be released to the public.

"Okay," Dad says, taking Michaela's finished plate and depositing it into the sink. "Honey," he says, looking at Mom.

"Uh-huh," Mom says, not looking up.

"Honey!" Dad says, sounding impatient.

Mom looks up now, "Yes, dear?"

He gives a small sigh. "I'm taking Mickey to school now, okay? And I'll refill the gas on the way to work."

Mom gives him a brisk nod, "Right. I should probably get going too, my meeting starts at 9." She checks her watch and her eyes widen. "And I definitely need to get going." She comes up to my dad and gives him a kiss on the cheek. "Love you."

"Love you too," my dad mumbles back.

Then she comes to Michaela, smiling before kissing her on the cheek too, "Love you, Michaela."

"Love you, Mom," Michaela says, watching her mother as she picks up her laptop bag and heads out the door.

Then Dad turns to her and gives her a smile, weary but warm. "Alright Mickey. Let's go get you that education."

…

The bell rings to signal the end of third period. Michaela gets up from her wooden desk, gathers the books off the desk and slides them into her backpack.

"Don't forget your essay on Benjamin Franklin's lifetime achievements due next Tuesday!" the history teacher calls over the sounds of students' rising voices, ready for their next class.

Michaela zips her backpack closed, then hoists it over one shoulder, then the other. She leaves after the rest of her classmates out the door and scans the hallway. Then she sees a familiar face.

"Nora!"

A short girl with short dark brown hair and a round face comes up to Michaela and beams. "Hey, girl. How was history?"

"Same old, same old," Michaela says, beginning to move with her friend down the hall. "You have math next, right?"

Nora makes a face. "Yeah, with Mr. Collins. Ugh, Algebra is so boring. I wish all tenth graders didn't have to take it, I'm so ready to move on."

Michaela snorts, "Nerd."

Nora looks outraged. "Right!"

"More than me anyway," Michaela shakes her head, "I'm struggling to pass that class."

Nora sighs. "You'll be fine, Michaela. At least your dad isn't breathing down your throat every time you put pencil to paper."

Michaela shrugs. "Well, it's easy for him to see what everybody is doing. Doesn't he have some kind of alternate time or something – Flashtime?"

"Shh!" Nora glances around, trying to see if anyone had heard. She turns a sharp glance back to Michaela. "You need to be more careful!"

"More careful than about my dad? He came back from the dead," Michaela says.

Nora rolls her eyes. "Still. And Flashtime only works when he's moving super fast, which he can't do all the time. Otherwise all the food in this city would be gone in a day."

Michaela laughs. "That would be a problem."

Nora allows herself a small smile. Then her face becomes somber again, "Hey, did you hear about Anna Palmer?"

Michaela feels a weight drop in her stomach. Anna Palmer is a girl in their year, blonde and willowy with trendy square glasses. Her father, tech mogul turned politician, had started a mayoral campaign, but just a week ago he along with his wife and Anna were taken by the Festo, Central City's latest terrorists. She shuddered to think of what they were capable of.

"Yeah."

"I know we didn't really know her that well, but still…"

Michaela turns a shocked face to her, " _Didn't?_ What, you don't think-"

"No- I mean – I don't know," Nora says hastily. "I just mean… before she was taken."

Michaela nods. "I hope she's okay. Wherever she is."

…

Opening the door to the STAR Labs museum, Michaela is greeted by the bright sound of Cisco Ramon's laughter.

At 5:00 in the evening, the museum is mostly empty, the last few of many visitors that come daily are leaving as the sun sinks into the sky, throwing a warm red glow onto the outside of the lab. As Nora and Michaela walk in through the wide glass doors, Cisco turns from his conversation with Alyssa Mavers, a lecturer at the museum, and beams at the girls.

"Nora! Michaela! My favorite little future scientists," he turns to Alyssa, "So we'll talk more about this tomorrow?" A smile and a nod from Alyssa, and she walks back towards the home lecturing center. Cisco turns back to the girls, still beaming, and sweeps his arm around the facility.

"So?" He prompts, his eyes shining hopefully. "Notice anything different?"

Michaela feels Nora stiffen beside her and is sure that the same flood of anxiety is going through her as well. They both cast their eyes frantically around the facility, trying to find what new change Cisco has instilled.

Ever since Cisco opened STAR Labs Museum to the public six years ago, he has dedicated his whole self to the perfection of the facility. Almost every time Michaela has seen him, he's either been feverishly editing blueprints on his computer or walking around the museum enthusiastically explaining the exhibits to visitors, who seem slightly bewildered by all the advanced words he uses to describe them. Even now, Michaela thinks, even if she manages to find it, she probably won't be able to guess the name of whatever new fancy innovation Cisco has installed.

But the museum looks almost exactly the same as when she saw it two days ago. Polished linoleum floors and a large statue in the shape of a beaming H.R. Wells greet the visitors as they walk in. To the right is a large, very detailed model of the particle accelerator that exploded twenty years ago and gave Nora's dad his speed powers, complete with mini figures of various villains the Flash has faced over the years in their respective containment cells. To the left is the central lecturer station, where lecturers prepare and keep their notes, from which the lecturers go to various rooms in the museum to give presentations about STAR Labs history and innovations. Multicolored panels line the walls depicting the various accomplishments and inventions developed by STAR Labs over the years. A large, elaborate Rube Goldberg, consisting of many balls rolling along a roller coaster-like track, snakes around the lobby entry to the museum.

Cisco looks at them expectantly, but Michaela cannot for the life of her see what has changed. She silently wills Nora to say something.

"I'm sorry, Cisco," Nora finally says. Michaela curses inwardly as Cisco's face falls. "I don't see anything different. Michaela?" Nora turns to her.

Michaela shakes her head.

Cisco tries to put on a bright face. "Oh… that's alright. Here, I'll show you," he motions them forward, past the statue of H.R. Wells and towards the opposite wall where a panel hangs that reads _COLD GUN VERSION 14._ Underneath is three long paragraphs worth of information written in a large font about Cisco's newest invention.

Cisco gestures again. "See? I finally got the version 14 cold gun info up…oh never mind," he sighs, "You two are the future scientists of your generation, you'll get there eventually."

He turns and leads the way through a familiar hallway as Nora and Michaela exchange a knowing glance.

They follow Cisco down the hallway, turning as he does as the hallway rounds into a curve, and Michaela knows that they are reaching the STAR Labs control center. They pass the Time Vault as they go, its presence betrayed only by the thinnest of lines that indicates the door. Nora's dad was reluctant even to include that, but Cisco had argued with him, reasoning that most of the lab's inhabitants knew about it now, so they may as well prevent people from smacking into it.

Finally, the hallway ends and leads up to a large opening that revealed the STAR Labs control center. Barry, Iris, Wally, and Joe are inside, and look up as Cisco enters the room with the two girls.

"Barry, your kid is here," Cisco calls, throwing a pamphlet at him. Barry brings up his arm to catch it so fast Michaela almost misses it, "And the one who knows our secret and is always hanging around."

Iris gives him a look, "Cisco, do you ever know how not to be rude?"

"Aw come on, Michaela knows I'm kidding," he says with a disarming smile. He grins at Michaela, "Right, little scientist?"

Michaela grins back, "Yeah."

"How was school, girls?" Barry says, coming to fist pump Nora, then Michaela.

"It was fine, Dad," Nora says, but Barry picks up on her wistfulness.

"Oh, I know, it's pretty boring now," he sympathizes, "It only gets interesting in college, when you start on quantum physics."

Iris rolls her eyes next to him, "Good God," then her eyes find Michaela and she smiles, "What about you, Michaela?"

Michaela smiles back. She's always liked the way Iris carries herself. Even though she never wears a superhero suit, it is almost as if everyone automatically knows she is the one in charge, the one to be listened to. Even when she isn't working in STAR Labs, when she's working as a journalist, or visiting Michaela's and Nora's school, she always radiates a dominating presence. But Michaela also loves the way she feels safe around Iris. Like she would give anyone who tried to mess with her a real smackdown. And she's always cared about Michaela's opinion or input, respecting what she has to say and valuing her presence at the lab.

"Good, thanks."

Iris smiles gently. "Good," she gestures to a table behind her, "I made banana bread today, girls. Help yourselves."

Michaela and Nora move eagerly to the small table against the wall where Iris has laid out two loaves of banana bread. Iris frowns as she turns to see it too.

"Wha- there were three, who ate the banana bread before I announced it?" Iris demands, turning to the lab with her arms crossed.

Barry, Joe, and Cisco all freeze. Cisco's hand goes up slowly, timidly. "Possibly guilty."

Wally laughs heartily. "You all should know by now not to mess with Iris' banana bread before it's been formally announced," he chides.

Iris beams at her younger brother, "Thank you, Wally," then she gives a stern look to the rest of the room, "Something you would do well to remember next time."

They all nod as Michaela and Nora look on, amused.

Suddenly, Cisco catches sight of something on the main computer, and he goes over to it, brow furrowed. "Guys, I think we have a problem."

Barry, Iris, Joe, and Wally all look up, and train their sharp gazes on Cisco. "What's up, Cisco?" Barry asks.

Cisco looks up at them, then back at the screen. "It seems that the Festo," he winces and interjects, muttering, "They really should have left the naming to me-"

"Cisco!" Iris says.

"Sorry, the Festo have revealed the location of Ray Palmer and his wife and daughter. They want a ransom, a hefty one. They're being held at the old nightclub Oliver used to work at, back in his early days of being the Arrow." Cisco trails off, looking wistfully at the opposite walls.

"Okay," Barry says turning to the rest of the team, "So then we just buzz Oliver and-"

"Barry, you know Oliver doesn't do that kind of work anymore," Wally interjects.

Barry sighs, "Right. Well, who else do we…" He turns to look pleadingly at Michaela, "Are you sure your dad-"

"Really, Barry?" Iris interrupts as Michaela fidgets guiltily in her seat, "It's not fair of you to ask that of her."

Barry looks sheepish. "Right. Sorry, Michaela," he adds to her, and Michaela shrugs, feeling guilty that she can't be of more help.

"Okay," Barry sighs, "So we'll go into this mission without insider knowledge. Unless, Caitlin-"

"Nope," Cisco shakes her head, "Ever since she got that government job, they've had her going day and night doing her medical reporting. She doesn't even get a minute to sleep never mind bring Killer Frost over here to join the party."

Barry nods, "Okay, I figured. Um…," then his face brightens. "We could ask Sorceress."

Joe's eyes widen, Wally looks down to inspect the arm of his suit, and Cisco immediately busies himself with a random invention on the table behind him. Iris glares at both of them before turning to Barry. "Barry, we don't have _time,_ " she says slowly, as if just barely holding her temper, "We have tried to contact the Sorceress only a million times, and it's all ended the same way. You need to give this up."

Barry's shoulders slump and he looks defeated. "But we only have three speedsters-"

"Two speedsters-" Wally interjects, looking sheepish, "Jesse's with Kate on Earth Two, visiting Harry."

Barry sighs. "Okay, two speedsters and Vibe. I don't think that's enough to spring them."

"It has to be," Iris says firmly. "I think you guys will be able to do it."

Barry and Wally exchange a glance, and the worry and doubt running between their eyes is so strong Michaela can almost feel it.

She feels something else too- a sharp guilt gnawing at her belly. She knows the Sorceress. She meets the Sorceress every night. She knows that with the Sorceress' help, Barry might feel a little more confident about having a shot at this rescue.

But somehow, Michaela can't bring herself to come forward with that information. Even with the stakes so high, somehow she just can't tell them.

…

The Sorceress turns the doorknob to her new secret hideout. It has been a week since she first came to Central City and she still can't get over the idea of having a partner. No that wasn't the word… a helper. Especially not that of a teenage girl.

She was free of Michaela tonight though. The tenth grader decided to spend the night with her friend, since it was a Friday. The Sorceress had felt resentment poke at her when the girl left- she missed the times when she could take a day off when she needed it- such an idea certainly does not exist now.

She comes into the dark room, and drops her cloak in the center of the room. She sighs as she sinks into one of the wooden chairs in the room, then looks at the time: 9:22 pm. She then frowns and reaches for her cloak once more, reaching into one of her pockets and pulling out a small piece of paper.

She has almost forgotten about this. When she was pulling off her latest rescue, stopping a bank robbery, a tall man with short brown hair had brushed past her briefly and had dropped the paper into her pocket. The Sorceress is sure now that it was that man, because before she had brushed past him, there was no crinkle in her pocket and afterwards there certainly was.

She hesitates before folding open the paper, then gives into her curiosity and unfolds it carefully.

She takes a sharp breath of air as she reads the note.

 _I know you're back_. It reads, _Come and find me, Evoryn._

 _Hi! Thanks for sticking with me through another chapter! More to come regarding the developing partnership between Michaela and the Sorceress, Michaela's family, and Team Flash's struggles in dealing with the Festo._


End file.
